Preliminary Finlas review
Courtesy Anthony Brady (3SER Casey FM)
In Preliminary Final action in the Victorian Football League (VFL) for season 2007, the Casey Radio 97.7FM 3SER team were at TEAC Oval, Port Melbourne, on both Saturday and Sunday, to witness Geelong and Coburg post comprehensive victories.
On Saturday, in the Second Preliminary Final, it was a dominant 11-goal final term by the Cats which saw them smash a hapless North Ballarat Roosters side. The margin at three-quarter time had been just five points in favour of Geelong.
Beautiful spring-time conditions greeted players at TEAC Oval on Saturday, with sunshine and a warm top temperature in the mid-20s meaning bench rotations would be high by Cats coach Leigh Tudor and Roosters mentor Gerard FitzGerald.
A slight breeze favoured the Williamstown Road end of the ground, and after winning the coin toss, Geelong captain and 2007 J.J Liston medallist James Byrne elected to kick to that end in the first term.
The crowd was surprisingly good at 3500, with the overwhelming majority being Geelong fans, who decided to forego attending local league finals to support their VFL side.